Metamorphosis
by WizardsGirl
Summary: Being Master of Death isn't easy. Especially not when one of your charges gets drunk and ends up losing a bet that ends with you in a different Dimension in a new body... Well, at least he didn't get turned into a girl, and Harry's learned that its the small things that mean the most. Still, he just knew something weird was going to happen.
1. Prologue: Fall From Grace

**A/N:** I don't know why I started this, besides the fact that I'm in a minor rut with my WSI fic and others. (Sigh) Oh well, enjoy this while my Muse lasts on it, mkay? Then it'll take me forever to update it again (Grimace)

I don't own Naruto OR Harry Potter, just the OCs, OOCness, and plotline of this fic and such.

**R&R Plz!**

TIMELINE:

NARUTO VERSE – Before the Series

HARRY POTTER VERSE – After DH, No epilogue.

**Prologue:**

_Fall From Grace_

"_Death was afraid of him because he had the heart of a Lion."_ - _Arabic Proverb_

Death had lost some of its novelty to Harry Potter after the seventh time it had graced his presence. Now, on his thirteenth death, he could only stare at the Entity he was Master of with a deadpan expression, making the male cough embarrassedly into his fist.

"Would you care to explain to me, Dominic," the young immortal Wizard began in an almost gentle voice to Death, "why I was just ran over by a bus, when you assured me at our last meeting that I would not have to worry about such mundane attempts on my life? Hmm?" Death shifted, and dragged long, skeletal-looking pale fingers through his purple hair, eyes the same, glowing green of his Master's looking sheepish and worried.

"Heheheheh, my bad?" He said, voice a sweet tenor as he turned bizarrely affective puppy-dog-eyes on Harry, who sighed and patted the shorter mans head gently.

"It's alright, I suppose," he said reluctantly. "Just send me back, will you?" Death-or Dominic, as Harry had named him so many years ago-hesitated and nibbled his thin lips with his sharp, straight teeth.

"I, uh, can't? Master?" He managed; Harry's bright green eyes narrowed ever-so-slightly.

"And pray-tell, my Servant, why is that?" he asked, the very air, gray and thick around them in Death's Domain, chilling with his tone, making Dominic gulp.

"Um, I may have made a bet with one of the Japanese Deaths about you not dying for another five years, and since you're here, I, er, well, lost?" He finished meekly; Harry's eyes had narrowed even further, and Dominic shivered and hunched within his long, black robes, clutching his ritualistic Scythe close to comfort himself in the face of his Master's ire.

"I see," the Immortal said lowly. "And what did this bet you made entail, hmm?" Dominic gulped and licked his bitten lips.

"Um, I bet that you wouldn't die for five years. If you _did_ die, though, then, um, you have to do a favor for Jashin before you returned to your body... I was drunk! I'm sorry, Master!" The Entity wailed, throwing himself forward to clutch at Harry's legs, sobbing and begging for forgiveness. Harry reached up slowly, and pinched the bridge of his nose, looking exasperated and resigned.

"Just-" Harry let out a tired sigh. "Don't drink any more. Not without my permission, understood?" He asked/demanded; Dominic nodded rapidly, bone-pale-yet-lovely face filled with stark relief. "And go get Jashin so I can complete whatever the hell it is you've doomed me to." Dominic flinched, whimpered, and nodded meekly at the sharp, annoyed tone in his Master's voice. He scrambled to his feet and disappeared in a swirl of the surrounding gray fog, making Harry shake his head slightly and once again pinch the bridge of his nose. The petite, purple-haired Entity returned with another, this one looking and just _feeling_ as different to Dominic as light and day. Harry took a few moments to compare the two, absently reaching up to rub the place where his scar used to be.

Dominic was short, only about five-two to Harry's own six-foot-even. He dressed in an absurdly long black robe that hung off one delicate shoulder, no shoes, and had soft, bright purple hair. His eyes, large and round and almost-innocent looking, had once been pure white, until Harry had taken up the mantle of Master of Death. Then he'd changed them to match Harry's own Killing Curse green. His skin was whiter then Voldemort's had ever been, without any sight of veins beneath the thin, soft-looking flesh. His hands, nervously clutching the black handle of his Scythe (which was only a few inches taller then him at the tallest point), were long, thin, and looked as delicate and fragile as a baby birds wing, easily broken and crippled. His face was slightly round with youth, but he was undoubtedly 'pretty', with a small nose, those eyes, gently sweeping cheekbones, and thin-but-lovely-colored lips. He radiated an uncertainty and shy hesitance, especially when Harry was around, that poked at all the over-protective instincts the Immortal Wizard had in his body. It didn't help the now twenty-nine-year-old that Dominic only looked about fifteen.

Jashin, however, was the polar-opposite. He was wrapped in a pure white yukata, with a blood red obi and matching red sandles. He was a little taller then Harry, and broader than the lean Immortal, with more muscles and larger hands that still managed to somehow look graceful. His hair was a dark red and spiky, his skin was as pale as Dominic's, and his face was handsome if a bit broad, with a heavy, square jaw, straight nose, and plump lips. His eyes were slanted, exotic in their Asiatic shape, and were a bright, gleaming silver, with slit pupils, and, if Harry could name the emotion in them, he'd say it was a mixture of sadistic glee, amusement, and an unwavering, inhuman bloodlust. His Scythe was a thick-handled, impressive thing, towering over both Harry _and_ Jashin (Dominic didn't count, as nearly _everything_ Harry saw on this side of the Mortal Plane towered over the little Entity). It's handle was a gleaming white, but it's blades, all _three_ of them, were a bright, blood red, and slightly serrated.

He cut an intimidating, slightly-insane figure, and Harry tilted his head into a small nod of greeting.

"Master," Dominic started nervously. "This is Jashin-Sempai, and he's the one I made a deal with." The little Entity started nibbling his lips again, and Harry nodded again, this time in confirmation, and Dominic slunk over to his side to shyly lean against him, causing Harry to instinctively drag his fingers through the shorter males exotic-colored hair.

"What is this favor you want of me, then, Jashin-san?" He asked politely, using the Japanese honorific despite the fact that he'd never been nor knew what to use besides _-kun_ for boy and _-chan_ for girl. Death had no need for language barriers, and The Master of Death knew every language, old and knew, as if they were his Mother Tongue, and this fell to all forms of language, written, spoken, or signed.

The Japanese Entity grinned, baring teeth that were narrow, curved, and pointed, the teeth of a piranha.

It was vaguely disturbing...

"Neh,, neh, Harry-shukun, it's not too hard!" His grin gained a mischievous, maniacal twist, and Dominic pressed slightly closer to his Master's side, looking uncomfortable. "My favor is that you take a new body in my own realm of the Dimensions. See, not so hard! I don't even care what you _do_ so long as you just agree." Harry narrowed his eyes slightly, and frowned. Technically, as Master of Death, he was Jashin's Master as well, seeing as how his power touched on all forms of Death, from Dominic, the Entity of Unexpected Deaths, to Jashin, Lord of Slaughter, Entity of Painful, Miserable Deaths, who was actually the more merciful Entity, considering his responsibility was to end suffering and absorb the pain and misery with the mortals deaths so that their Afterlife was pleasant (well, if they weren't Judged guilty and sent off to eternal torment by whatever religion they followed...). Dominic struck anywhere at any time and didn't discriminate between happy, miserable, or indifferent peoples...

It was one of the reasons he was so young and innocent appearing. Dominic was the Deadly Surprise, and who would expect a submissive-acting fifteen-year-old?

"What's the catch?" Harry asked in reply to Jashin's 'favor'. Jashin pouted, an utterly ridiculous look that would have been cute on Dominic's face.

"Neh, neh, Harry-shukun! Ruin my fun, why don't you?" Harry shot him a slightly-narrow-eyed look, and the Japanese Entity huffed, sulking. "I control what form you take, and you're not allowed to kill my Followers, no matter how annoying they are." Harry narrowed his eyes and flexed his metaphorical-muscles, reaching with his very _soul_ for the link he held with the Entity. Jashin flinched, straightening to attention, face hard but silver eyes flickering with nervousness. Dominic shuddered and pressed closer, eyes closed and looking utterly blissed-out.

"You will not turn me into a girl," Harry ordered firmly; Jashin managed a respectful nod.

"Hai, Harry-shukun," he replied, voice somber.

"I will retain the power I have within my body, even if I only have a small part of it at the beginning, as I know you'll have to turn me into a newborn, but I _will_ eventually gain the entirety of my powers back. Am I understood?" He demanded; Jashin gave a slightly deeper nod, and Harry knew that, if the Entities could produce mortal bodily functions, the Japanese Entity would be sweating.

"Hai, Harry-shukun."

"Good." Harry nodded and released his hold, making Jashin slump with a relieved huff of breath. Harry didn't mind this favor much. As long as he kept his powers and didn't get turned into a girl, he was good. (He couldn't help the small shudder at the chill that dripped down his spine at the thought of a gender change. Girls, in his experience, were _scary_. Hermione with her massive amount of knowledge and stern bossiness, Ginny with her hair-trigger temper and nasty curses, _Bellatrix_, Mrs. Weasley with her iron-grip on the men in her life... Yes. Women were something to respect and treat with care. He had no wish to be one.) "I agree with this favor. I will remain in your Dimension until my next death, agreed?" Jashin nodded, smiling once more. Harry turned and lifted Dominic's chin, meeting those mirror-image eyes. He tapped the little Entity on the nose and gave a dry smirk.

"Don't get into trouble, _do not drink_, and make sure you have fun while I'm running about doing Merlin-knows-what, understand, Dominic?" The purple-haired male nodded, nuzzling closer to Harry's hand.

"Yes, Master," he agreed; then yelped as he suddenly found Jashin's cheek pressing against his, the Japanese Entity grinning cheekily up at Harry from his bent-over position.

"Neh, neh, don't worry about my Kawaii-Kōhai, Harry-shukun! I'll take _good_ care of him." The leer the Japanese Entity aimed at the smaller, younger-looking Entity made Dominic squeak, blushing brightly, and cause Harry to shake his head in rueful amusement.

"I'm sure you will, Jashin-kun," he said simply, changing the Deaths suffix with a slight smirk. Jashin pouted and huffed at him, but soon straightened and gestured at Harry with his Triple-Scythe.

"Ready, Harry-shukun?" He asked; Harry nodded, and the Death Entity made a sharp, slicing motion with that demented Scythe of his, and Harry was swallowed by blackness, knowing his body was morphing and changing to suit Jashin's fancy.

He had a feeling that his new life was going to be interesting...

**A/N:** There we go. I hope you enjoyed this first chapter!

**Vocabulary:**

Dominic – "belonging to a lord or master", "servant of God"

Sempai – senior student, partner, mentor. Typically meant for someone who was there before the speaker, and is therefore more knowledgeable on the subject.

Shukun – lord, meritorious deed, master

Kawaii – cuddly, cute, sweet, etceterra, etceterra.

Kōhai – Younger student, underclassmen, one who is there after the speaker and therefore requires tutelage.

Deaths – for every kind of death, every facet, there is a personification. In this case, they appear human, as Harry started out human. It is an effort to comfort their Master and/or Followers. This is also the reason for the "Dimensions". There are many, _many_ kinds of Deaths, and each has control over some form of the many Mortal Planes. Death is many and ever-changing.

**R&R**


	2. Chapter 1: Changes

**A/N:** Mkay, so here's the First Chapter. Hope you enjoy it!

TIMELINE:

NARUTO VERSE – Before the Series

HARRY POTTER VERSE – After DH, No epilogue

**Chapter One:**

_Changes_

"_A wise man makes his own decisions; an ignorant man follows the public's opinion." - Chinese Proverb_

He came out of the darkness to the fact that his eyes were sealed shut, and all sound was muffled. He tried to curse, but all that left his mouth were unintelligible whimpers and mewling sounds. He quieted when hands-_too large, too strange, too __**warm**_-picked him up, cradling him in their palm, and low, comforting growls rumbled through his flesh, making his heart calm and his mind drowsy. A small, rubber nub pressed against his mouth and, suddenly struck with a new, foreign instinct, Harry latched his too-small mouth onto it and suckled, mouth filling with a sweet-sour milk that made him whine and mewl pathetically. Those large hands shifted, and he was being gently but firmly rubbed with a soft cloth. Under the ministrations of those hands, with his belly steadily filling, the Immortal slipped into a dreamless sleep.

This continued to be the norm for the next week, with his body getting steadily stronger and easier to control, until he could _finally_ open his eyes. Everything was blurry, just like before, when he'd needed glasses, but this seemed more from the fact he was some kind of baby animal then the fact that he had a double astigmatism in his eyes. A large gray-black form lay nearby, and it shifted closer to him with a low, comforting sound, the smell of fur, musk, and grass filling his nose, as it had several different times the past week. Harry made his little whine-mewl, and was immediately licked by the gray blob, who, after a few minutes, pulled away and let out a serious of barks, growls, and whines, proving it to be of some canine-nature.

_Bloody hell_, Harry suddenly thought. _He made me a puppy._ The irony wasn't missed. Harry, Master of Death, had been turned into a pet, who would be under the power of a master. Amused more then irritated, he reached through himself, down the link that connected him to Jashin, and sent him the impression of a wry smile and the feeling of his hair getting ruffled. He could understand why the other had put him in this position, of course. The Deaths had been Master-less for billions of years, and then here comes Harry, wrecking their independence with the fact they had to obey the then-seventeen-year-old. It was bound to grate on some nerves. He should just be happy that Jashin hadn't turned him into a bloody _slug_.

Hands, the ones he'd gotten used to the last week that smelled like sweat, sweet things, and baby powder, lifted him and turned him about, until what he believed might be a face, the only things he could make out was a mass of brown, and two bright splotches of red near the middle.

"Hello little Ryuutarou-kun," a loud, female's voice murmured to him. It was the first time Harry had heard anything besides whines and growls, and he mewled at her. There was a blur of white, and he could only guess she was smiling. "Welcome to the Inuzuka Pack, pup." After that he was set back on the ground, and staggered over to snuggle against the dark gray blob that watched over him.

It took only a few days for his eye-sight to clear to crystal, and only about a week after that for him to figure everything out about his new 'family' or 'pack' as his guardians called it. His new name was Ryuutarou, third-born son of a massive gray-and-black wolf-like dog named Suoh, and a smaller dark red female hound named Akahana. He had two older brothers and a younger sister. His oldest brother, Kotaro, took after their mother in body shape, but their father in color. He was a little small, but very loud and demanding. The second born, Yo, was a wolfish-looking pup with dark gold fur and reddish highlights, who was cheerful and curious as any kitten. His little sister was a reddish-tan colored hound, named Hanako, and was sweet and shy and liked to cuddle. And Harry looked just like his 'father', with red dustings throughout his fur instead of his fathers gray, and was a deep, dark black. He was also the smallest of the litter, much like he had been one of the smallest children at Hogwarts before he finally hit his growth-spurt. He could only hope it came earlier in this life than it did in his previous.

Two humans visited them daily, but they still smelt strongly of Pack, and both bore the red marks on their faces that looked like upside-down triangles. One, the Alpha Female of the Inuzuka Pack, was named Tsume. The other was her daughter, a vet and warrior apparently, named Hana, who was partners with four large male wolf-dogs. Harry's life was now filled with the two women constantly checking his and his siblings health, coaxing them to eat (Harder in his case, as he had the mind of a twenty-nine-year-old _human adult_ and yet he was forced to drink bottled _breast milk_ from a _dog_... Yeah, as soon as he could, he was going on the dog food.). This continued until Harry and his siblings were six-months old, and that prayed-for growth-spurt hit like a possessed thing, making Harry stand shoulder-to-shoulder with his large father, and he was still growing.

He could only be happy that he wasn't stuck as a midget-dog for any longer. Kotaro had started making fun of him before he grew to tower over his 'niisan', and now the smaller dog scowled at him but didn't say anything.

Harry sighed as he patiently waited for Tsume to click his leash into place. The woman had been less-than-pleased with him ever since he was eight weeks old, and had refused to become partners with any of the children of the Pack who were ready. She'd even tried to pair him off with her too-young seven-year-old son, Kiba. While Harry would readily admit the kid was adorable, he had still refused to be his partner.

"_None of them feel right,"_ he'd informed her, and wasn't that just fascinating? An entire Clan of people, fighters called Shinobi (or Kunoichi if female) that could talk to dogs. Hermione would have been having a knowledge-junky _fit_, if she hadn't died six years previously when a rogue Purist had killed her and Ron and their newborn daughter, Lily, by suicide bombing their home with a cocktail of dangerous potions...

Blinking as his leash was tugged (conveniently pulling him from his depressing thoughts), Harry lifted his head and began to obediently follow Tsume out of the Inuzuka Compound. Kuromaru, Tsume's one-eyed canine partner, walked on her other side, larger than Harry by a good six inches at the shoulder. This was a common occurrence now, a once-weekly walk around the village. He'd gotten a good feel for the place, and had observed the Shinobi and Kunoichi at work, felt their 'Chakra' at work. It was similar to magic, but required different disciplines to work it, and focused mostly on the elements when put into attacks.

Harry walked with his head and tail up, green eyes bright and focused as he kept alert while they walked through a crowd. Tsume picked up a few things here and their, bought the two dogs a skewer of meat, which Harry enjoyed well enough. Their day, though, turned dark when they came across a group a civilians gathered in a circle and attacking someone...

Someone small and blond and who was sobbing and pleading with his attackers, all of whom either jeered or snarled.

Harry didn't even think about it, he just acted. He grabbed his leash with firm teeth, ripped it from Tsume's hands, and lunged into the fray with an unholy snarl, startling screams and shouts from the civilians, who staggered out of his way. He crouched in the center, large, shaggy black-and-red body covering the entirety of the injured child's form, ears pinned and snarling as he glared hatefully at the villagers. The little boy whimpered and sobbed under him, curling his body into a little ball.

"_Worthless scum,"_ he snarled. _"If you __**ever**__ come near this Pup again, I will not hesitate to __**kill you**__, do you understand?!"_ He barked at them all, and then he shifted, grabbed the boy by the back of his shirt and pants, and leaped through the air, carrying the boy past a stunned Tsume and Kuromaru, and ran swiftly all the way back to the Compound. There, he moved straight into his pen, and gently set the boy down on his own bed before shutting the gate to his little den. He moved back to the boy and laid down so that he was between the child and the opening to the pen, and began to carefully lick the little ones wounds, whining every time his actions produced a whimper of pain.

"_Be easy, Pup,"_ he murmured, pulling a bit on his Master of Death abilities in order to make himself understood. The child gasped weakly in surprise and turned huge, bright blue eyes on Harry in awe.

"Y-you can talk?!" he cried; Harry couldn't help but smile, and gently nudged the boy on the shoulder.

"_Hai,"_ He responded. _"My name is Ryuutarou. What's yours?"_

"N-Naruto!" The boy replied, still awed. "Uzumaki Naruto!" Harry smiled warmly.

"_Well, Naruto-kun, I'm going to be protecting you from now on. I'm going to be by your side as often as possible, and I'm going to take care of you, because you are a Pup and deserve all the love and care you can take, and then some." 'Just like all children deserve,'_ Harry silently thought. _'Just like I never received from my own family.'_

"B-but-!" The boy tried to protest; Harry shushed him, and gave his cheek a lick, tongue rasping lightly over the strange whisker-like marks, and breathed in the boy's scent, a mix of ramen, fox, and child.

"_It is done,"_ Harry told him sternly, and, after a few more halfhearted protests, Naruto hesitantly curled against the large dogs side, and soon dozed off into a deep sleep, his wounds slowly healing as Harry watched. A sound near the door of his pen had Harry lifting his head, and he offered a silent warning glare to his 'father', Tsume, and Kuromaru while they stood at the doorway. Tsume looked a mixture of mystified and annoyed, Kuromaru looked exasperated but understanding, while Suoh just nodded at Harry, turned, and walked away.

"...I suppose you've chosen your partner, then?" Tsume finally said, scowling slightly; Harry merely nodded, making the Alpha female release a harsh breath and nod. "Well then, I guess the Inuzuka Clan has a fox in its midst now. I'll get him one of the honorary jackets." She scowled at him again, before she turned and stalked away. Kuromaru stood there for a moment, his single eye gazing at Naruto's bright hair, the only part of him you could see over Harry's back. Finally, he smirked and gave the younger dog a nod.

"_Well done, Ryuutarou-kun. He'll make a fine addition to the Pack."_ With one last nod, the older nin-dog turned and walked leisurely after his own partner, and Harry turned back to Naruto after shaking shaking his head. Giving the child's sunflower-yellow, spiky hair an affectionate lick, Harry laid his head down next to the boy's, closed his eyes, and dozed, staying alert for a while yet, just in case.

**A/N:** Hmm... None of you expected this, did you? Didn't think so... Might be a while before my next update on this fic, still trying to figure out what should happen next.

Suggestions will be considered, and if any are chosen, that Reviewer will get acknowledgment. Mkay?

**R&R!**

**Vocabulary:**

Suoh – Dragon. Ryuu is the more commonly used form of this name.

Akahana – Red Rose

Ryuutarou – Son of the Big Dragon **(**Harry will be referred to as Harry, but called this name, and perhaps Ryuu-Kun/Chan. Okay? Just so there's no confusion.**)**

Kotaro – Small First Born Son

Hanako – Flower Child

Shinobi – The title of male ninja, but also a generalization of all Ninja.

Kunoichi – The title of female ninja.

Niisan – A respectful way to say Big Brother. Another, more familiarized, way to say this is "Aniki". Note – Younger Brother is "Otouto", and Younger Sister is "Imouto".

Tousan – Father

Kaasan – Mother

Naruto's Scent – First of all, the boy practically _bathes_ in ramen, and eats it enough that its scent would be incorporated into his own. The fox scent is Kyuubi's influence. The "Child" scent is basically a mix of smells that he has before puberty, when his hormones will change his scent at a base level. It's how all dogs know a child from an adult or teenager, despite the simple size difference.


	3. Chapter 2: Shinobi

**A/N:** Mkay, so here's the Second Chapter. Hope you enjoy it!

And I just realized I forgot Harry's second older Brother. His name is **Yo**, which means **Sunshine**, alright? Excellent.

TIMELINE:

NARUTO VERSE – Before the Series

HARRY POTTER VERSE – After DH, No epilogue

**Chapter Two:**

_Shinobi_

"_All we see of someone at any moment is a snapshot of their life, there in riches or poverty, in joy or despair. Snapshots don't show the million decisions that led to that moment." - Richard Back (Running from Safety)_

It took nearly a month for Naruto to believe that he was welcome in the Inuzuka Pack, however reluctantly, and that they would never harm him... Not that Harry would ever let that happen. They'd have to kill him first, and since he was, technically, still a puppy (as was Naruto, considering he was Kiba's age...) despite his abnormal growing patterns compared to his siblings and the other nindogs. They'd have to kill him first, and since Naruto clung to him like Harry was his _father_ and not his _partner_, well...

They'd be in for a vicious, bloody battle.

Not that that would happen, with Naruto taking to Inuzuka life with hesitant enthusiasm. His dark purple Inuzuka jacket, with its large middle pocket and fur-lined hood, made him an adorable picture, his blue eyes and bright blond hair standing out from his face as he listened intently to everyone and everything, soaking up knowledge of Inuzuka-etiquette and Pack-etiquette like a particularly dry sponge. He even accepted the fact that Kiba, as son of the Alpha Female and deceased Alpha Male, was of higher ranking then he was. It was interesting to watch when the two boys were together, to say the least.

Kiba was all together boastful and showy, loud and, if Harry was honest, utterly _obnoxious_. He treated the older Inuzuka with respect, but otherwise was doted upon for being a Pup, and the Alpha's Pup at that. But, he was also a bit insecure, and showed that by challenging the other Inuzuka Pup's to fights, half of which he lost.

Naruto, however, was desperate for affection, shy around strangers, and surprisingly quiet. He was soft-spoken and always trying to please, and the sheer _desperation_ to keep the home he's found amongst the Inuzuka was depressing, to say the least. He could play some good pranks, when he wasn't unsure of himself, but the fact of the matter was the poor Pup was scared to death that he would do something to make Harry go away, and to get himself kicked back out on the street. (This fact had softened Tsume up, at least, and the Alpha Female had treated the blond boy as her child, or at least as a Pup of the Pack, instead of some reluctantly taken in stray.)

But, when you put the to Pups together, something startling happened. Naruto, with his acceptance of Kiba as the higher ranking Pup, had never so much as made a challenging motion. As such, Kiba felt no need to fight him, but instead took to being the over-protective sort of friend that was both possessive and affectionate. The two, when together, had no qualms in cuddling, with Kiba petting Naruto's head as the blond nuzzled against his side. Harry found it adorable, especially when they would fall asleep against his side, Kiba's arms wrapped protectively around the little blond as both snored softly.

When the Academy started up, it was Harry's duty to escort little Naruto there, and Kuromaru took Kiba. Strangely enough, despite the fact that Naruto was an unannounced member of the Clan, he still got bothered, mostly by the civilian families and their children. It left the boy leaving the Academy with hunched shoulders and puffy eyes from crying, and a battered, furiously protective Kiba hovering around him, growling that cute, puppyish growl at all and sundry. The only time Harry was forced to interfere was when someone had tried to throw a _Molotov cocktail_ at the two when they'd been walking towards their nindog escorts.

He had caught the bottle in his teeth and tossed it in a nearby puddle, while Kuromaru had pinned the assaulter with a thunderous growl. The man had been taken away not even five minutes later, to face prison time and torture, while Harry and Kuromaru had picked their respective Pups up,dumped them onto their broad shoulders, and had sped away, back to the safety of the compound, where Tsume had furiously gathered the two, scared boys into her arms and led the way into the Main House, to coddle and cuddle and sooth the boys, and give them hot chocolate and pocky while they cuddled on the bear-skin rug, leaning against Harry's side. They fell asleep there, Kiba curled protectively around Naruto as always, both with little chocolate mustaches and sticky hands. Harry turned his eyes to the Alpha Female and her partner when they returned from a Council Meeting, and both looked grimly satisfied.

"He was sentenced to death, three days from now," Tsume told him quietly; Harry could only nod with a feeling of cold satisfaction. Anyone who attempted to _burn a child alive_ deserved more then a public execution. Turning his head, Harry nuzzled his face against the cuddling Pups, and settled in for his nap.

After that incident, people were more hesitant to even _speak_ badly towards Naruto and, since he was always with the blond boy, Kiba. Especially since Tsume started escorting the boys as well, and Harry was given permission from the Hokage himself to sit in on lessons. It was an eye-opening experience, learning that little Naruto and Kiba were being trained to be _paid killers_. And that it was the _norm_ here. It made Harry a little nauseous, but he didn't try to dissuade them.

Better they learn to protect themselves and their loved ones now, as opposed to learning it all during a _war_.

Like he had.

He didn't like that they were going to be expected to kill, but Harry wasn't going to interfere, not wen doing so could mean their deaths. So, he helped as best he could, making sure that they did their homework despite their whines and grumblings (well, _Kiba's_ whines and grumblings. Naruto submitted to the orders with a meek sort of grace that usually guilted Kiba into doing his work as well). Harry also helped the two with their physical exercises, providing a moving target for their dull, wooden Kunai and Shuriken, an opponent for their taijutsu, and a living set of notes for when they forgot something. Growing up with Hermione had taught him the value of memorizing lectures... Mostly hers, but it worked with teachers as well.

He was pleased with their progress. Kiba and Naruto, with their Pack-mentality, slid together in a near-flawless form of Teamwork, with Kiba being the frontal attacker, and Naruto being the one who slid in with a sly shot, before dodging away and providing distant back-up, until he once again saw an opening to slide in and give a distracting hit.

When they were older, if they were put on the same team, they could very well be deadly. For now, Harry just took delight in knocking them gently around, stealing their weapons, and tiring them both out so that, besides food (of which Naruto was the uncontested _devestater_ of all things edible, despite his tiny form), their first thoughts were _sleep, now_. The fact that, since he had taken to training them, neither had been underfoot when Tsume and the elder Inuzuka had been working, had earned him more than just a few treats, was just an upside to keeping his Pup's alive...

Though, the breeding offers were bizarre, if flattering, but he mostly ignored that.

A year passed, and his two pups were joined by two others.

One was a shy, sweet little girl named Hyuuga Hinata, who had short, dark blue hair, and lavender-tinted white eyes. Apparently she had been bullied by some older kids, and Naruto and Kiba had come to her rescue... Which had explained the day when _both_ boys had come home covered and bruises and scrapes, and Naruto had actually been _scowling_. The little girl was kind and empathetic, and so insecure that Harry was viciously reminded of Neville when they first met. When she hesitantly joined in their spars, though, that _Gentle Fist_ taijutsu style of hers was dangerous, even if he had a hell of a time convincing her to use it at all. Still, with her around, Naruto was a bit more confident in his actions, and the two became fast friends and played small pranks on Kiba from time to time, taking refuge behind Harry when they did, to giggle softly together while Kiba caterwauled and yowled like a scorched cat.

The second, new Pup, was a black haired boy named Uchiha Sasuke. The boy was a little loud, and very competitive, and had a strange sense of Hero-Worship for his 'Aniki', Itachi. He was insecure in the same way Kiba was, afraid of disappointing his family, especially his brother. But he was also low in self-confidence for the same reason Hinata was, that being the lack of positive attention from his father. When he came to the Inuzuka Compound a month after he started appearing, he bore the red fan of the Uchiha, and a very confused, yet happy, mindset. His father had, apparently, acknowledged him, but then told him to not follow in his brother's footsteps, something that confused the seven-year-old completely, as he had always been told to be 'just like Itachi'.

In spars, he was like Kiba in almost every way, attacking in flashy, up-front ways, but smarter then the other boy. Naruto and Hinata meshed easily, slipping in and out of openings and providing support, while the two more aggressive boys pushed Harry to frustration by attacking at different angles, together and separate and at intervals. Harry had actually had to use his magic-or, well, _Chakra_ as it was called here. He'd had to heal himself from Hinata's _Gentle Fist_, burns from Sasuke's _Giant Fireball_ ninjutsu (boy was a bloody pyromaniac!), and from Kiba's and Naruto's nasty cuts and bites. He'd had to make his skin harder to protect himself. He would speed himself up more, but he was already faster then the children, no matter how smart they were.

The four of them celebrated their Eighth Birthdays at the Inuzuka Compound. Kiba's was July seventh, and featured a large chocolate cake and chocolate ice cream (though all the nindog's got vanilla ice cream and dog treats instead of Kiba's.). Sasuke's was July twenty-third, and his cake was strawberry, and in the shape of the Uchiha Fan. He had vanilla ice cream, and vanilla cupcakes with strawberry icing. Naruto's birthday was October Tenth, and it was the first one he'd ever had celebrated for _him_, instead of for the death of the demon Kyuubi, who had both attacked the village and been destroyed by the Fourth Hokage on the same day. His cake was a vanilla-and-chocolate marble cake, a plain square, with purple, blue, and yellow icing on it in colorful swirls of chaos. He had chocolate-chip ice cream, and secretly gave Harry licks of it.

Hinata was the youngest, with her birthday being on December twenty-seventh. She got a spice cake, with cream cheese frosting, in the shape of an eye, with her name in lavender right in the middle, along with some dark blue frosting-flowers. She chose mint-chocolate ice cream, and made some vanilla cupcakes herself, to give the dogs. She also had her party made into a slumber party, with only the three boys (and Harry, of course) invited. Tsume gave permission for them to make a little camp in the Compound Courtyard, smiling faintly as they excitedly put everything up, with Harry acting as either a stool or prop occasionally. They spent half the night on a sugar-buzz, whispering stories to one another about things that had happened in the previous week or at the Academy.

It was all so sweet and innocent, and when they fell asleep, Harry wished, desperately, for a camera or a pensieve, so he could hold onto that image for the rest of his life. Naruto and Hinata were curled on their sides, holding onto each others hands, while Kiba and Sasuke curled against their backs in adorably protective manners, Kiba with his arms around Naruto, and Sasuke with his arms around Hinata. Harry curled himself against their feet, and, smiling, fell asleep.

It wasn't until the next morning, that they found out that Uchiha Itachi had slaughtered his entire Clan, and that Sasuke was the only one left besides his nuke-nin brother.

That innocence, that sweetness, of the night before, was shattered in a vicious, bloody way. Sasuke was in shock. Kiba was in a furious, terrified rage. Hinata wept quietly, a hand clinging to Sasuke's, and the other wrapped in Naruto's. Naruto, was quiet. Very, very quiet. And those blue eyes of his were blank and as quiet as he was, even though his free hand was knotted in Harry's fur, pulling in a slightly-painful manner that the nindog ignored. Tsume, after gently telling them all of this and trying to comfort them as best she could, with hot chocolate and pocky, left for a Council Meeting to discuss Sasuke's placement.

"They're... Dead?" Sasuke finally spoke, voice high and confused and so, so _lost_. Harry bowed his head, before leaning forward and putting his forehead against the little boy's chest in quiet comfort. Sasuke unconsciously began to pet him with his free hand, blinking rapidly. "Dead?" He asked again.

"Yes," Naruto said softly; Sasuke looked at him, met those blank, quiet, bright blue eyes, and slowly nodded back.

"Dead," he murmured, and, suddenly, he seemed to collapse, sprawling out on the floor to stare at the ceiling, black eyes wide even as tears streamed down his pale cheeks. Hinata didn't hesitate to lay down next to him, curling against his side, and pulling Naruto down as well, making him relinquish his hold on Harry's fur. Kiba, after pacing for a few more seconds, huffed and collapsed next to them, before cautiously nuzzling against Sasuke's side. Naruto reached over Hinata, and placed his hand on Sasuke's chest, so that they all were touching.

It was the last straw, and, immediately, Sasuke, began to cry, deep, racking sobs and soft wails as he curled into his friends, face a mask of anguish, and repeating the word 'dead', over and over again. Kiba grit his teeth and cried with him, while Hinata quietly wept. Naruto just closed his eyes tightly, letting go of only a single tear as he curled more firmly against Hinata's back, and tightened his hand in Sasuke's shirt.

After half-an-hour, they feel into an exhausted sleep, tear tracks on all but Naruto's face, even though the blonds sleeping face was now lined with worry-wrinkles and a small frown. Harry let out a low, mournful sigh and curled against them all, letting his head rest on Sasuke's chest, offering what comfort he could, considering only Naruto and Kiba could understand him. It was an hour later, as he began to lightly doze, that Tsume quietly returned, looking sad and tired as she gazed at the four Pup's and Harry.

"Ryuutarou-kun," she said with quiet softness; he grunted just as quietly, tilting an ear in her direction, eyes roving over the four eight-year-olds faces intently. "Sasuke-kun will be staying with us from now on. I know you already keep an eye out for those Pup's, but, would you mind keeping a closer eye on him? The last thing we need is an Avenger created from the Last Uchiha." Harry was silent for a few minutes, before quietly grunting an affirmative. Tsume gave a low, relieved sigh, and bent to give him a gentle pat on the back. "Arigato, Ryuutarou-kun." Then she left, and Kuromaru laid down on the other side of the four children, curling around them as well, and the two nindogs shared a silent camaraderie over the guarding of the children during the night, offering comfort from nightmares and weeping alike.

The next day, Sasuke and the children were mere afterimages of their former selves. They were all quiet and subdued, even more so when they all chose to go to the Uchiha residence to gather Sasuke's things. And. Even though Hinata had to go home, she didn't want to, and hugged all three of the boys extra-tight before she left. Sasuke went to his new room and hid there for an entire day, not eating anything, and Kiba and Naruto sparred with an as-yet-unseen viciousness that led to both having to be tended by the Clan Medic-nin, Akira, who was an elderly lady who had an age-grayed white Akita as a partner, named Setsuna. After that, Harry took it upon himself to make the two boys run laps until they were so exhausted that he was forced to carry them home, and they were asleep seconds after laying on his back.

He then made his way to Sasuke's room, and dragged the snarling, fighting boy downstairs, where he was given a stern look from Tsume, and forced to eat, which he did reluctantly until after the first few bites, and his hungry stomach made itself known. Harry then took the boy back to his room, and slept next to him, uncaring of the tears that soaked his fur, and offering what comfort he could.

The day after, the three boys trained, and Hinata showed up soon after, having actually, _purposefully_ escaped her usual guard in order to see her friends. And, when her father showed up, angry and vicious in his comments, she had kicked the man in the shin, lavender-tinted eyes furious.

"Shut up, Tousan!" She shouted, stunning both the man, and the two guards with him. "Sasuke-kun has just lost his family, and I don't give a _damn_ what you think! I'm going to be here for my friend! And-and..." she trailed off, hands clenched, but uncertain as to what else she could say.

"And," Naruto spoke up, coming up and standing next to her. "We don't care how much you frown or scold or yell," the blond said, eyes intense and determined. Hinata nodded, scowling and giving her father a glare worthy of a Hyuuga.

"Yeah!" Kiba shouted boisterously. "So there!" He bounced on his toes next to Hinata, baring his teeth up at the Hyuuga Head.

"Because," Sasuke's voice spoke up softly, the first words he'd spoken since the day he found out about his Clan's demise. "Because we're a Pack," he said, stepping up and next to Hinata as Naruto unhesitatingly shifted out of the way. The four of them stared up at Hiashi, and Harry walked up to sit behind them, and slowly, oh-so-slowly, bared his teeth, as the four quietly shifted their hands, until all of their fingers were interlocked with the person's beside them. Hyuuga Hiashi stared down at his daughter as if he had never seen her before, and then let his lavender-tinted-white eyes rove over the other children as well.

"I see," he murmured, face closing off as he stared down at them blankly. "I expect Hinata home at dinner, Tsume-san," he finally said, turning his attention to the proud woman's, who nodded firmly.

"Of course, Hiashi-san," she replied; with a nod, and one last slightly-confused look to his daughter, Hiashi turned and left with his guards. The four children watched him leave, before looking at each other, and then turning to Harry.

"Ryuu-kun," Naruto said. "Can we spar today?" Harry tilted his head, and then nodded at them, smiling.

"_Hai, Naruto-kun,"_ he replied, standing and leading the four Pups towards the training grounds. _"We can train today."_ The four of them followed, still holding hands, and Harry was relieved to see that the closeness of before had returned, tighter than ever. Some of that innocence was gone, and would probably never return, but that was the price...

Because, growing up always had a price, but it was especially steep for those who would grow up to be Shinobi.

**A/N:** And there is the next chapter. Hope you guys like it!

**Vocabulary:**

Arigato – Thank You

Akira – Intelligence. Is a boy AND a girls name.

Setsuna – Calm Snow

Harry Talking To Naruto – Naruto and the other Inuzuka are the only ones who can understand Harry. Harry is talking to them just like any of the other nindogs. The Inuzuka assume that Kyuubi, being a kind of canine, made Naruto able to understand the nindogs, and that's how its explained.

The Four Pups – I wanted Naruto to have more then one friend, and as it says on _Narutopedia_ that Hinata and Naruto first met when he defended her from Bullies, I thought she'd be a perfect member of the Four Pups. As for Sasuke, well, I honestly barely like him, but I figure if he had a support system _besides_ Itachi, he would be less fucked-up as he got older, and even less so if he wasn't even _near_ the Uchiha Compound when the Massacre happened.

The Birthdays: I got all of the Birthdays from _Narutopedia_. I chose Hinata's birthday for the Massacre, because it's in December, and Sasuke is always struggling through snow when I've looked through flashbacks of the Massacre, so, there we go.

_Any Questions?_

**R&R!**


	4. Chapter 3: Growing Up

**A/N:** Mkay, so here's the Third Chapter. Hope you enjoy it!

TIMELINE:

NARUTO VERSE – Before the Series

HARRY POTTER VERSE – After DH, No epilogue

**Chapter Three:**

_Growing Up_

"_In the end, it is the person you become, not the things you have achieved, that is the most important." - Les Brown_

Another year passed, but the shadow that the Uchiha Massacre cast upon Harry's Pups had left its mark. All four of the little Shinobi-in-training took up an almost fanatical obsession with training, and with them in that endeavor was Harry, working to be faster, harsher, even though it hurt him to make his Pups bleed, but they seemed to need it, and he understood. They wanted to help Sasuke, and if Sasuke was so gung-ho about getting stronger, then they would too. It was the individual changes that Harry noticed most, though.

Little Sasuke was withdrawn, not nearly as loud and brash as he'd been before. He wore his dark green Inuzuka coat, altered so that the red Uchiha Fan blazed off the back. It looked good on him, even though he always wore his hood and hid his face in its shadows. He also avoided the Uchiha District like it was a rabid animal, or that drunkard that soiled himself and no one wants to touch... Harry couldn't really describe it with any analogy; the little boy just had this look of wariness, repulsion, and dark sadness in his eyes whenever he looked in that direction.

Kiba had quieted a bit, but was still the loudest of the bunch, and was even more protective. This got even worse, in Harry's opinion, when the boy was given his partner, Akamaru, a ninken puppy that, according to Tsume, would grow at a slow rate, so that his and Kiba's bond would grow (apparently, Harry's growth spurt, at so young, was an abnormality, and his siblings were being watched with intensity to see if they'd grow just as fast. So far? They hadn't, a fact that disgusted little Kotaro). When he became Kiba's partner, the boy was possessed. He would sniff and check each of the other three children, as well as Harry, with Akamaru joining him, looking for injury and trying to learn how to differentiate the emotion-smells (which, if Harry was honest, were still difficult for _him_ to figure out.).

Naruto had little change, though he began to study poisons. The little boy...the one that Harry had firmly decided was his unofficial son/Pup, and who treated him like he was a father, not a partner. His sunshine-yellow hair was longer now, falling in spikes that Naruto had to constantly push out of his eyes until Hinata had given him a thick purple ribbon to push the fringe back. His eyes were colder, now, less shy. He watched everyone with an instinctive wariness, everyone but his three friends, Harry and Akamaru, and Tsume and Hana. He insisted on setting small traps around the bedroom before he went to sleep, traps that the other Pups and Harry quickly learned how to take down and put back up (which was _not_ something easy, considering Harry didn't have _thumbs..._).

Hinata, though, had had the biggest change that anyone could see. She began growing her hair longer, as well, and she seemed to have adopted some of Sasuke's old attitude. She was snappish and aggressive to those who weren't her friends, and when she was sparring, she no longer hesitated to use _Gentle Fist_. She had earned herself a caramel brown Inuzuka jacket, given to her on her ninth birthday, the only present she opened before all of the Four Pups, Harry, and Akamaru, had quickly left, making their way through the snow, to the Uchiha Memorial Stone, where they quietly ate the cupcakes Hinata had insisted on instead of an actual cake, and lit some incense for Sasuke's family's souls. Hinata had vastly improved in her self-confidence, and spent more time at the Inuzuka Compound than at the Hyuuga Compound. Her father didn't complain though, but that was most likely because the poor man still had no idea how to act around little Hinata anymore. It was something of an amusement for Harry, when he and the other Pups would escort her home, to see her nod politely to the two guards, snarl at her father if he deigned to say anything (which was rare after the first four times), beamed at the boys, and then stalked off to her room.

Harry had continued to grow, and was now Kuromaru's size... Well, he would be, if the older ninken would stop growing. But, grow he did, something Harry learned that the ninken would continue to do, until their partner died. Then, in the older dogs cases, the ninken would just go to sleep... And not wake up. It only happened with those ninken that had been with their partner for decades, though, and, were the ninken to die, the human partner would most often grieve for a long time, and some would never take up a new partner, which was extremely rare. Hell, some would even commit suicide, or go on a suicide mission!

He'd made Naruto promise on everything he believed in, that, should Harry die before him, he would _never_ do such a thing. He didn't have to take on a new partner, but Harry would order Jashin to send him back before he ever let his little Naruto kill himself out of grief.

It was that silent vow to himself, though, that got him thinking. Jashin and Dominic were his servants (slaves, if he was honest, but he preferred to ignore that rather... _demeaning_ word.). They answered to him when it all came down to it. That being the case, he asked himself...

How the _hell_ had he _ever_ been bound to the bet?

If he had told Jashin that, no, he _wouldn't_ be going to his dimension; if he had ordered the two Entities to never bet about him ever again, they would have to obey him. His Word, Will, and Being was Law. So why, in Merlin's name, did he allow himself to be, in a sense, 'reborn'? He answered himself halfway through the Pup's tenth year.

He'd been bored.

He had gotten tired of the Wizarding World, the paparazzi, the marriage requests and constant stalking. And, when he'd moved to the muggle world, he'd grown tired of the annoying _normalcy_ of everything. Hell, when he finally realized this, he was _grateful_ that he'd been run over by that bus...

Never wanted it to happen again, _ever_, but still grateful!

Shaking his head, the large, wolf-like ninken focused on the Academy instructors lesson on the Great Shinobi War... He'd heard this three times, ever since he'd begun sitting in on the Pups lessons, but he'd noticed that the tales got steadily more bloody and violent as years went on...

A few more months passed, during which Kuromaru lost his left ear, yet somehow gained the ability to speak Human (something that amused Harry to no end, watching the other ninken's mouth move as he spoke. Dog mouths were _not_ made for _any_ human tongue. It was _seriously_ one of the most entertaining things he'd witnessed since coming to this Dimension, and Kuromaru got so sick of his constant heckling and giggling, that the older dog avoided him like he had fleas.). Naruto gained a new love for the long, thin throwing needles called Senbon ("They're easier to poison," he'd said simply when Iruka-sensei, their new Academy instructor, had asked. "And, if you're careful, you can poison someone with them and only leave a small pin-prick, or a tiny scratch." The other children had avoided him even more than usual, with the exception of the other members of the Four, of course), Sasuke found a best friend in a pair of Tessen–also known as Iron War Fans. He even got them personalized, so that they looked just like the Uchiha Fan. Kiba became viciously focused on his Clan techniques, as did Hinata, although the girl had also gained a fanaticism for a Nata that she was given by an older girl named Tenten... It was a hatchet with a claw-like bit of blade sticking out at the end, and the blade itself was six-inches long, and the handle was another six. Safe to say, when she wanted to practice, none of the Four–or Harry for that matter–were around for her to practice _on_.

As the Pups eleventh year passed by, Harry noticed other children beginning to hang around a bit more. A rather chubby boy with swirls on his cheeks that was always eating, who was always with a perpetually lazy boy that had black hair done up so that his head looked like a _pineapple_. Both spoke to Naruto and Sasuke whenever they saw them, and listened to Hinata and Kiba when they talked about something... Harry thought their names were Choji (the chubby one), and Shikamaru (Pineapple). Then there was the little boy in the too-large over-coat that had a _very_ high collar that covered the lower half of his face, and sunglasses that covered his eyes. Harry liked him well enough, it was just that he could never go near him, because his large size made the boy–little Aburame Shino–nervous, and thus made the bugs he carried click and make high-pitched buzzing sounds that upset Harry's ears. They both decided that a respectful distance was best kept between them after one memorable day when Shino's _kikaichu_ deemed Harry too much of a threat after the boy had fallen down while trying to _tactfully retreat_ from the ninken's large form...

Well, Harry now knew what it felt like to be briefly mummified, and had had to spend three days in Hana's care in the Clinic until his Chakra returned naturally, with Naruto never leaving his side and the other Pups showing up randomly at all hours.

A little blond girl and a little girl with pink hair began stalking Sasuke... Actually, they had, apparently, been fighting over him for the last two years, and Harry hadn't paid attention. Now, they were more persistent, falling into rather bloody scuffles when they believed that Sasuke had paid more attention to the other. It was ridiculous. Amusing, especially for Hinata and Kiba, but ridiculous all the same.

Harry spent most of his time as a sparring partner for the Pups, and a strange guardian at other times. Tsume was worried about his seeming lack of the usual Inuzuka Bond with Naruto, but he had waved it off. After all, he also grew too fast according to her, and he could only explain it as, perhaps he had been too far grown for the Bond to initiate by the time he met Naruto. She had begrudgingly accepted that excuse, but kept an eye on him and the Pups often.

When the Pups twelfth year came about, Harry started to stress. It was at the end of this year, that his Pups would take the Genin Exams and see if they could graduate. If they did (which he had no doubt about), then they could all be separated unto different Teams, and would spend more time apart. Not a necessarily _bad_ thing, as it would teach them independence, but then Harry would fret about the other Pups... And Kiba would be _manic_ in his need to check them all over for injuries and illnesses and check their emotional state. In order to ignore the stress and worries, Harry updated the Pups training regimen, focusing on their rather small amount of ninjutsu, as well as their stealth. After all, it was much harder to sneak up on a dog then on a person. He took grim pleasure in the fact that the four of them had the fastest hand-sign speeds out of the Genin, and out of some Chunin as well!

It was to be expected, though, with Sasuke being the Rookie of the Year, Hinata being the Top Kunoichi of the Class, Kiba as top Tracker (Akamaru could find scents faster than Harry could, and identify them faster, thanks to Kiba's strict self-training so that he could identify emotion-scents), and Naruto was the top Stealth-Fighter. Harry helped in that, despite his rather large size, and always caught others by surprise because of it. After all, who would expect a wolf-like dog bit larger than a full-grown English Mastiff to be so _quiet_?

The Pups twelfth birthdays were a time of getting last-minute Clan techniques, weapons, and stern talks about how Shinobi/Kunoichi should act, as they represented the Village.

Kiba got another of the Inuzuka Jutsu to work on with Akamaru, from Tsume. Hana gave him Soldier Pills. Sasuke gave him an earring with a fang dangling from it. Hinata gave him and Akamaru matching black, spiked collars, grinning the whole time, and even laughing when Kiba started chasing her, yelling threats. Naruto and Harry worked together, and got Kiba a necklace of fox and wolf fangs (which was a lot harder than Harry had thought it would be. The Forest of Death, while not _nearly_ as disheartening in attitude or appearance, had some _nasty_ animals in it.).

Sasuke received more of his Clan's Fire-Style Jutsu from the Hokage (who was holding all of the Uchiha Clan's scrolls for safe-keeping, apparently). He was given a Windmill Shuriken by Tsume. Hana gave him a new set of Kunai and Shuriken. Kiba and Akamaru gave him a pouch of Soldier Pills, while Hinata gave him a smoke-gray face mask that held crushed herbs in it that would protect him from most poisonous gasses, as well as hide the lower half of his face. Naruto and Harry gave him elbow-length gloves that had bone strips across the back of the hand part, all the way up to his elbows.

Naruto's birthday came with a scroll on rare poisons from the Hokage. Tsume got him a few bone-beads that she immediately slipped into his hair at different places. Hana got him a few scrolls on anatomy and some basic Medic-nin exercises. Sasuke gave him a wallet that looked like a frog (the boy's obsession with the amphibians was a little odd, but then he'd pointed out the many things they could be used for, mostly naming poisons, and Harry had dropped the subject.). Kiba got him a new set of Senbon, as well as a pouch of Soldier Pills for Harry. Hinata, following her theme, gave him and Harry matching purple collars, spiked, as well as a small, spiked pony-tail in order to tie his hair back (which she insisted on using right then, braiding his shoulder-blade length blond hair, so that the bone-beads stood out, as well as the spiked hair accessory that. Spikes, she whispered to Harry and Naruto later, which were laced with a paralyzing poison, so that those who tried to grab his hair would be in for a nasty surprise). Harry had gotten the boy a set of earrings with a pair of his _own_ fangs on it, the teeth having grown back almost over night.

Hinata's birthday was a somber event, as always. She was given a new dress from her father, which she had accepted with a small sneer, but thanked him for in a clipped, cool way. Her little sister, Hanabi, had gotten her a small stuffed rabbit, of all things, face emotionless if not for the small, embarrassed blush. Hinata had accepted it with a small smile, hiding it in her Inuzuka coat's pocket, and thanking little Hanabi with seriousness. Tsume gave the girl a new set of Kunai and Shuriken, as well as a whet-stone so she could keep her Nata sharp. Hana gave her Makibishi, which were little metal things that looked like Jacks, that you could use to slow your enemy or even injure them. Hinata had immediately asked Naruto to poison them, which he agreed to. Kiba gave her her own collar, a caramel brown one that matched her jacket (and then gave Sasuke a dark green one so that the four of them could match). Naruto gave her a fancy fan that noblewomen used to hide her face, but this one was thicker than normal and, if you pressed the button on the handle and waved it, it would release a hallucinogen. Which made Harry's give of a face-mask that worked like Sasuke's, just perfect. He'd found the herbs himself, and Naruto had helped put them in the mask, which was, unlike everything else, a dark blue instead of brown, to match her hair.

After that, the Four Pups, along with Harry and Akamaru, went to the Uchiha Memorial Stone, for a night of incense and prayers. They also took the time to go to the Memorial Stone that held the names of all those Killed in Action, and prayed for the souls of a few of the Four Pups family members who were on it, as well as others.

When the day of the Genin Exams approached ever closer, Harry could only pray that he'd done enough, and gave his Pups a fighting chance. Looking over their sleeping forms the day before they were to take the exams, with Hinata sprawled over a lightly-snoring Kiba, drooling on the boys chest while Akamaru slept on her head, and Naruto curled into a ball under Sasuke's head, which was on his side, and Naruto's fingers digging into the fur of his side... Harry let out a low sigh.

They had grown up so damn _fast_...

**A/N:** This was more of a filler-chapter than anything, but I wanted to show how things had changed, you know?

ALSO, to the Anonymous Reviewer who said I made Naruto "Kiba's Submissive Bitch"

...

Dude, they were SEVEN and then EIGHT, and they're like BROTHERS.

As it is, I find myself having to explain.

Does anyone have a shy sibling? Or are YOU a shy sibling? Well, shy siblings tend to stick around and behind their louder, more out-going siblings. Hell, friends do this too! I wasn't trying to make Naruto Kiba's "Bitch". He was just the shyer and quieter of the two, due to his upbringing and fear of messing up. Now, he's more quiet due to the traumatizing effects of the Uchiha Massacre on his closest friends and Pack.

I'd apologize for the apparent misconception, but, seriously.

Wtf.

ANYWAY, here's the Vocabulary and Q&A part.

**Vocabulary:**

**Kunai - **A throwing knife is one of the common weapons of a ninja. It is often kept in a holster on the leg in a pouch attached to the belt. Kunai can be used in conjunction with explosive tags and other weapons to form deadly combos.

**Shuriken** – A Throwing Star. Another common weapon, Shuriken are often kept in a holster on the leg or in a pouch attached to the belt.

**Senbon - S**enbon were first used by doctors in acupuncture, then it was adopted by ninja and Hunter-nins to hit points on the body to cause death, deaden limbs or cause their target to fall unconscious.

**Tessen** – Called a war fan, itis a fandesigned for use in warfare. Several types of war fans were used by the samurai class of feudal Japan. War fans varied in size, materials, shape and use. One of the most significant uses was as a signaling device. Signaling fans came in two varieties:

1.) a real fan that has wood or metal ribs with lacquered paper attached to the ribs and a metal outer cover

2.) a solid open fan made from metal and or wood, very similar to the _gunbai _used today by sumo referees.

The commander would raise or lower his fan and point in different ways to issue commands to the soldiers, which would then be passed on by other forms of visible and audible signalling.

Tessen could also be used as weapons. The art of fighting with war fans is tessenjutsu.

(Gotten from Wikipedia, as Tessen aren't used in Naruto (Temari's fan is something different), and I wanted Sasuke to have something different as a weapon.)

**Nata – **Basically, its just like I said in the chapter. I got the idea from the Manga _**Higurashi When They Cry**_, but Hinata's Nata is not NEARLY as big as Rena's. Technically, _no_ Nata is, in reality, as big as that one.

**Soldier Pills** - When the soldier pill is swallowed, it allows the ninja to fight for several days without rest. The pill is full of proteins and a special stimulant that momentarily increases the ninja's Chakra. When used on ninken, it changes their fur color in some way (For example, Akamaru turns red.).

**Makibishi - **This weapon is primarily used during escape, numerous Makibishi are thrown on the ground and enemy soldiers will have a difficult time pursuing because the spiked metal can penetrate the sole of the shoe wear.

**Ninken – **Otherwise known as nindogs. AKA the Inuzuka dogs.

**Genin – **Journeymen Ninja. The lowest level of Shinobi, they work with missions mostly rated D and sometimes C.

**Chunin – **Middle Ninja. The Shinobi that are qualified to lead on missions and teach at the Academy. They get missions rated C to B. All Shinobi can do D-ranked missions.

**Jounin – **Elite Ninja. Generally highly-experienced Shinobi with great individual skill who serve as military captains. Deal with B- to A-rank missions. Experienced Jounin will even do S-ranked missions, the highest, most dangerous, and most secret of missions.

**Medic-nin – **Shinobi who deal with medical treatments. Must have high intelligence and supreme Chakra control. Hana is considered a Medic-nin, even though she works in a Veterinary Clinic, because ninken have Chakra and require special treatment, and because, as an Inuzuka, she has personal experience with her Clan's unique Chakra.

**Q&A:**

**Hinata's Attitude Change – **I love the idea of a snappish, occasionally bad-mouthed Hinata. Just like I love the idea of a Prankster!Hinata.

**Naruto's Academy Sabotage – **People still attempted to sabotage Naruto's school work, no worries. But, when he has the protection of Harry and the Inuzuka, as well as the Last Loyal Uchiha _and_ the Hyuuga Heiress... Well. They didn't get very far. Also, consider the amount of training the Four Pups do on a daily/weekly basis with Harry. At worse, they tried to give him more work than the other children, on harder topics. Tsume was not amused.

**Ninken or Harry's Chakra – **All ninken can use Chakra. It's what makes them different from normal dogs. Harry, who was trained for years in the use of his magic, can work with his Chakra in a special way.

**Harry's Growth-spurt – **I based this off a normal dog's growing pattern. Considering he also has his Chakra stores growing quickly, he just got bigger, faster. I've made normal ninken slow-growers, so that Kiba could have Akamaru and bound before he became a Genin.

**Pairings – **I haven't decided yet, but I can tell you now there will be NO Naruto/Sakura or Sasuke/Sakura. Don't get me wrong, I've read some good fic's with her where she _isn't_ a fan-girl basket-case... Well, after she's been trained by Tsunade, at least. But, I just don't think I could write that pairing. If I decide to make this Slash/Yaoi, I WILL put a warning in the Summary. For now, there are no pairings (well, except the Asuma/Kurenai pairing, but that's basically canon, so ignore it.)

**Harry Speaking Human – **Kuromaru was only able to speak Human due to his extremely tight bond with Tsume, and the many years they'd been partners. As Harry doesn't have that instinctive Inuzuka Bond, and hasn't been with Naruto for the same amount of time or with the same amount of connection, it's _highly_ unlikely he'll get to speak Human naturally. That being said, as the Master of Death, there is no language he can't speak. But, honestly, I think I'll keep him a mostly-normal ninken and leave the Human-speech to Kuromaru.

**Genin Team Splits – **I'm thinking that keeping the original Genin Teams would be best. That way two members of the Pack are on each others team, with the Hinata-Kiba-Shino Team and the Sasuke-Naruto-Sakura Team. Nice and even, yes?

Thank You to everyone who reviewed!

_Any Questions?_

**R&R!**


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